1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to ink cartridges. In particular, the present invention is related to ink cartridges which are configured to be removably mounted to a cartridge mounting portion of a recording apparatus.
2. Description of Related Art
A known inkjet recording apparatus is configured to record an image on a sheet of paper with ink. This known inkjet recording apparatus has a recording head, and the recording head has a plurality of nozzles formed therein. The recording head is configured to selectively eject ink from the nozzles such that an image is formed on a sheet of paper. The inkjet recording apparatus has a cartridge mounting portion to which a known ink cartridge is removably mounted. The ink cartridge has an ink chamber configured to store ink therein, and when the ink cartridge is mounted to the mounting portion, ink is allowed to be supplied from the ink chamber to the recording head.
Another known recording apparatus comprises a mounting portion and a lever pivotably provided at the mounting portion. Another known ink cartridge is configured to be mounted to the mounting portion. The lever has claws, and the ink cartridge has engage portions. After the ink cartridge is mounted to the mounting portion, when the lever pivots, the claws engage and pull the engage portions, such that the ink cartridge is pulled toward an exterior of the mounting portion. Consequently, the ink cartridge is partially positioned outside the mounting portion, and a user grasps the portion of the ink cartridge, which portion is positioned outside the mounting portion, and remove the ink cartridge from the mounting portion. Such a known inkjet recording apparatus and a known ink cartridge are described in JP-A-2007-144811.
Nevertheless, the claws and the engage portions need to be accurately positioned to engage each other. If the claws and the engage portions fail to be accurately positioned, the claws may not engage portions when the lever pivots. In such a case, the ink cartridge may not be pulled to the exterior of the mounting portion. Moreover, if the claws are accidentally broken, the ink cartridge also may not be pulled to the exterior of the mounting portion. In addition, the portion of the ink cartridge which is pulled out of the mounting portion by the claws may be a small portion, and it may be difficult for a user with a big hand to grasp the small portion of the ink cartridge to remove the ink cartridge from the mounting portion.